Mumbai Indians winning the toss was a big advantage, admits Jos Buttler

Mumbai Indians batsman Jos Buttler believes that winning the toss against Kings XI Punjab in their Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter on Thursday was a huge advantage for his side. (IPL 2017 FULL COVERAGE)

At the post-match press conference, Buttler said, “It was a good wicket and with the boundary being so short in this ground, winning the toss was a big advantage for us.”

Hashim Amla scored his maiden IPL century to take Kings XI Punjab to 198/4, but Jos Buttler and Nitish Rana made short work of the chase as Mumbai Indians clinched an eight-wicket victory.

“The Kings XI Punjab’s score of 198 looked quite good, but we got off to a great start and it just shows that you never quite know what a good score is nowadays.”

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‘When you are chasing a score around 200, it is important to get a good start and luckily, me and Parthiv (Patel) were able to score a lot of runs in the first six overs. “, he added.

Jos Buttler (77 off 37 balls) was adjudged the ‘Man of the Match’ for his explosive innings and the England international was over the moon after finally scoring his first IPL half century.

“I am absolutely delighted. I have been in good touch throughout the tournament but today, I was able to convert it into a big score that contributed to my team’s win.”

This was the fifth consecutive successful chase for Mumbai Indians in this year’s IPL and Buttler believes that it has been a combined effort by the team that has led to their flawless record.

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“Our guys are in real good form. We have won some games from potentially losing situations this time and it could not have been possible without everyone’s contribution. Hardik (Pandya) has been very good for us and Nitish (Rana) has also been great and as a result, no target is too big for us.”

Mumbai Indians went into the game against Kings XI Punjab with an unchanged squad and that has been the trend for them this year, They have used just 15 players over the course of the tournament till now and Buttler said that they are not looking to experiment a lot in the near future.

“The decision will be taken by the coach and the team management. Personally, I think the conditions will dictate the team selection and we would love to get our combination right every single time.”